A golfer may practice his golf swing for many hours by hitting large numbers of golf balls and judging the effect on the ball to assess the proficiency of the swing. This allows the golfer to practice important aspects of the game but does not really teach the development of a correct swing. It is often stated that the correct swing should include the golf club being swung in an arc which is substantially planar and that a very important aspect in ensuring a correct swing is to have a correct backswing.
A golfer may practice his or her golf swing under the guidance of an instructor or alternatively by following instructions given on practice videos or from books. The actions of a backswing include swinging a golf club in progression from the address position through the backswing and finally to the top of the swing whilst ensuring correct position of the shoulders, hands and club-head. A golfer may develop a poor backswing in some instances, particularly without the guidance of an instructor. This may lead to the golf-club being swung above or below the correct plane which may result in an incorrect forward stroke and follow-through which results in poor golf shots being played.
It would therefore be desirable if at least some of the preferred embodiments of the present invention provide a training device which will allow a golfer to practice a correct backswing which will provide a correct “feel” enabling the golfer to improve his or her golf swing. It would also be desirable if at least some of the preferred embodiments of the invention provide a training device which is simple to use and may be used in the yard of a house or similar area. One purpose of the present application is to provide variations to and improvements upon the golf practice device of the present inventor's application WO2004/080546, the disclosure of which is imported herein by reference.